


Aftermaths

by IrenkaFeralKitty



Category: Yoroiden Samurai Troopers | Ronin Warriors
Genre: Aftermath of Torture, Angst and Hurt/Comfort, Emotional Hurt/Comfort, Gen, Hurt/Comfort, Makeshift funeral, Mention of Uncle Chin, Minor Character Death, Non-Consensual Drug Use, cremation, mention of luna - Freeform, non-descriptive vomiting
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-08-16
Updated: 2020-08-16
Packaged: 2021-03-06 05:32:53
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 5,731
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25928188
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/IrenkaFeralKitty/pseuds/IrenkaFeralKitty
Summary: The hours that followed Gaiden are rough.
Comments: 1
Kudos: 10





	Aftermaths

**Author's Note:**

> My brain jump Gaiden forward in time about two decades in time for various reasons we don’t need to get into.

Shuu flinched as Inferno’s attack died away, leaving behind bare rubble where the inhuman looking sorcerer had been moments earlier. The sense of squeezing pressure Inferno caused vanished as Ryo released the white armor. It was always a relief when the feeling of Kongo’s power flowing out of him ended. 

Fuck, but this was a nightmare. The goddamned EVIL UNDERGROUND LAIR wasn’t stable, not after Ryo had torn away most of the supports keeping the ceiling up. A cave-in was inevitable and super creepy to think about considering Shikaisen had stuck it under a fucking graveyard. 

In front of him, Ryo’s arms fell limp to his sides, swords slipping from his hands. His head dropped, shoulders rounded-

Metal fell and hit the ground with a noisy clatter. 

“Seiji!”

_Behind him, shitshitshit-_

Even Ryo was jolted into action. Touma’s eyes were huge, his face horrified, as he crouched over Seiji’s collapsed body. The heavy green plates of the Korin armor flickered and vanished, leaving their friend lying frighteningly still in just the undergear. 

“He’s- He’s still breathing,” Touma choked out as they rushed over. “There’s a crap ton of puncture marks in his neck. Fucking-“ His voice broke off and he stared helplessly up at them all. 

“Put him on his side,” Shin said quickly, kneeling down to help. 

“Jun, help me check the computer,” Nasutei said. She dashed over to the battered remains of the workstation lying on the ground nearby. “That scientist may have been insane but if he at least kept notes…”

Jun looked terrified as he ran to help her but he didn’t hesitate to throw himself into helping her pick up bits of broken electronics. 

Kongo rumbled in the back of his mind and Shuu stared uneasily at the dark rock above them. “This place is going to be buried soon. We need to get out of here.”

“Can we move Seiji?” Ryo demanded. “And what about- about-“ His voice cracked and Shuu remembered why he’d expected Ryo to collapse. 

“We’ll bring her with us,” Shuu said. 

Ryo stared at him, visibly struggling to process everything that had happened. Finally, he turned away, glancing briefly at Shin and Touma as they continued to check on Seiji, before beginning the walk to Luna’s body. 

“I hate to say it, but we can’t let the authorities find her body,” Nasutei whispered, appearing beside him. “We’re foreigners. If the police can make any kind of connection between us and her… It’s going to be bad enough trying to explain what happened to Seiji.”

Shuu grimaced. “I bet Uncle Chin can help Seiji. You’re probably right about Luna, though. Shit.” He vaguely overheard Jun talking to Shin, asking about Seiji, and risked tearing his eyes off the rocks above long enough to look around. 

Nasutei had the computer in all its broken glory bundled up in a white lab coat. Jun was holding a box of cds while he leaned against Touma. They were both watching as Shin used Suiko to carefully get some purified water into Seiji. 

Fuck, Seiji looked bad. Brittle, dried out, and broken. Shuu tore his eyes away. If he looked too long he’d get angry again and the cavern couldn’t handle Kongo’s rage. 

Although, that did give him an idea. 

Shuu waited until Ryo returned to speak up. “I think I can trash the spooky mystic and science shit, then stabilize the cavern,” he announced. “But you should all probably get out of here first.”

“Touma, can you fly us out?” Nasueti asked. 

Their awkward pigeon started, looked up, then nodded. “Out and back to New York if we need to. I’d really rather take Seiji to a hospital, though.”

“Korin is supporting him,” Shin said. “Just like when Arago had us. I think he’ll be okay. Physically, at least. I think we should return to New York.”

“We need to take Luna home,” Ryo said quietly. 

Nasutei but her lip but remained silent. 

“Right! Get everyone out of here,” Shuu ordered right before the rocks began to groan around them.

A short stream of filthy curses slipped out of Touma’s mouth, but dark blue light flared around them and suddenly everyone besides Shuu began to shoot upwards. Jun’s surprised exclamation was the last thing Shuu heard before rocks began to fall all around him.

* * *

The surface almost seemed surreal in how quiet it was. Touma held them above the uncertain ground, unwilling to risk the earth collapsing out from under them. 

They waited anxiously for any sign of Shuu. The trees swayed and shook below them, grass rippling, and the ground rolling. It looked like an earthquake. Hopefully it would also read as one to whatever sensors California had set up in the area. 

Touma had to fight not to fidget. Seiji was still unconscious, Shin still working to get tiny amounts of clean water into him, and Ryo was utterly blank-faced as he held Luna’s limp body. 

His brain started rumbling with facts about rigor mortis and decomposition, all very unwelcome information right now. Even he knew how badly stating any of it aloud would be received. 

Nasutei and Jun seemed okay, at least. Nasutei had kicked ass, as usual, and Jun appeared unharmed despite their ongoing efforts to contribute to the worldwide problem of child endangerment. Fucking hell, but they were bad at keeping him safe. Touma was pretty sure this one experience had negated all the arguments Nasutei had employed to convince his relatives to grant her custody of him. 

She was supposed to be providing Jun with a safe environment to work through the trauma of Arago’s invasion - or rather, “The Tokyo Incident”, as the media had dubbed it. Jun’s relatives had been sympathetic to his struggles but ultimately unable to help him deal with the memories and his parents’ ongoing bad health. Like a lot of the other survivors of Arago’s attempts to take over the Mortal World, their minds were badly damaged. Modern medicine could only do so much to help and it wasn’t like Nasutei or any of them could go explain about the Youjakai and Arago and everything. 

By necessity, it was all still a mystery to the world at large and Jun and his parents just one of the many broken families to emerge from it all. 

Finally, after what seemed like an eternity, the shaking beneath them stopped. For a long moment, everything was still. 

Then a spot on the ground suddenly swelled and erupted like a miniature volcano and Shuu came shooting up from the ground.

Kongo had his mask in place and his naginata in hand. He fell back to the ground, landing heavily. The heavy spear flew through the air and Kongo spun in a circle with it, smoothing out the ground around him until all seemed to be just like before. 

The armor of Hardrock always rumbled like the start of a rockslide deep in Touma’s chest, its power echoing through the invisible ties that bound them all together. 

Once the rumble quieted, Shuu looked up and Touma waved. He threw out a gust of Tenku’s power and was relieved when Shuu didn’t fight it and instead let himself be carried along to join the group gathered in the blue bubble. 

They were all together again. The knot of worry that had lodged itself in his chest once Touma had figured out what had caught Ryo’s attention at his birthday party eased off some. It was always better when they were all together.

Touma closed his eyes and stretched his mind up into space. The burning stars that surrounded the Sol system sang happily to him and he couldn’t resist resting briefly in the soothing song of the heavens. When he was ready, he took a hard mental look at the satellites buzzing above them, data flitting between them and the earth faster than any human mind could comprehend. 

He didn’t have a lot of experience with this, but Touma was gradually starting to find the entry points Arago must have used to seize control of and warp modern technology. The smarter the system, it turned out, the easier it was to manipulate. They were designed to work with humans, after all. 

The fight hadn’t taken too long, he realized. The satellites he’d interacted with when they reached Los Angeles’s China Town where still overhead and blithely ignoring the tiny bit of land they were hovering over. 

It wouldn’t do to leave a record of their presence, after all. 

He leaned into a handy GPS satellite, found the straightest route to New York, and then sent them hurtling through the air. He’d have to pay close attention to when a new satellite became a factor, but for now, it finally felt like something was going _right._

* * *

Ryo ignored Touma’s muttered explanations of where exactly in America’s massive landscape they were. 

He didn’t care what gigantic state they were in, just that there was sand all around them and no human structures anywhere in sight. 

If they really did have to do this, they were going to do it right, damn it all. 

Nasutei and Jun were sitting with Seiji a few sand dunes away while the others helped Ryo prepare. 

Luna deserved better than this. 

Even if her brother was gone, she must still have friends who would miss her. Surely she’d contacted one of them about the foreigners she’d met?

Her phone hadn’t chimed once with a personal message since Touma had carried them away from Los Angeles, though. There was only the occasional bill and ad hitting her email and some random picture stuff from the different social media platforms she’d used popping up on the screen. He couldn’t remember seeing her use it much during the brief time they’d known each other, either. 

This really wasn’t okay but Ryo couldn’t figure out anything better to do.

Nasutei was right. She was _always_ right. There was no way they could arrange to turn Luna over to the proper authorities without getting into serious trouble. She didn’t have parents or her brother, and they didn’t know what friends she had that they could safely approach to explain what had happened. 

They were going to have to turn Luna into another missing person and it made Ryo’s stomach turn. 

“We can bury her,” Shin said softly. “That’s what Americans do.”

Ryo shook his head. “We can’t just stick her in a hole and walk away. This way, we can return her to New York, at least.”

Shin nodded slowly and clasped his shoulder. “We’re here for you. Whenever you’re ready. Touma’s back with a container.”

Fresh tears pricked at Ryo’s eyes as he summoned Rekka. The familiar heat wasn’t comforting right now. It was a reminder of what he was about to do. 

His swords slid easily into his hands and Ryo joined the ends together. Brandishing them, he summoned Wildfire’s power and concentrated it on a patch of sand away from everyone else. It took almost a full minute of sustained effort to get enough heat, but Shuu eventually called out quietly to him.

“Hey, that did it,” Shuu said. He looked disquieted at what was revealed when Ryo ended his attack. The patch of sand he’d struck was now smooth glass. 

Touma stepped forward with Luna. He hovered above the ground, Tenku’s power blowing just enough to cool the glass beneath him enough that she didn’t immediately start… cooking… after he laid her down. He bowed his head for a moment in contemplation, then rose and nodded solemnly to Ryo before walking out of range. 

Someone had to say something first. 

Ryo swallowed around the lump in his throat. “She didn’t have to help us,” he finally managed to croak. “But she did. She knew what could happen but still wanted to fight. She was hurting so much herself but still wanted to try to heal our pain. Neither Luna or her brother deserved to be killed by that… thing…” he wouldn’t name him. Let that monster die forgotten. “I’m sorry, Luna, that we can't give you the kind of rest you deserve. I’m sorry you never got to meet Seiji or get to know Nasutei or Jun. It isn’t fair that you… It isn’t fair.”

Shuu spoke up next when he faltered. “You kicked ass, Luna,” he said, sounding completely miserable. “You fought for what was right no matter what the consequences might be.”

“She loved deeply and without reservation,” Shin added. “I wish we’d had more time to get to know each other.”

“I was never even mad she tried to stab me, just confused.” Touma said sadly. “After we fixed the misunderstanding, she helped me get well enough to fight.”

The others moved back. Close enough to bear witness but not in danger. 

“We won’t forget you, Luna. You’re part of the history of the armors now. You’ll be remembered, always.” Ryo held his joined swords out, taking several fortifying breaths. “We’ll take you home. Not the way we should, but- But you’ll be home, I promise.”

Tears were rolling down his face, the smallest possible tribute he could give her. 

“Good bye, Luna.”

Rekka’s power roared as he called out his attack. He could sense her in the path of his fire and felt it the moment she- fully transformed. 

Ryo immediately cut off the blast of power and collapsed onto his knees, bile surging up his throat. Then Shin was there, whispering words of comfort, and Ryo didn’t feel quite so bad about vomiting. 

Tenku’s power whispered and a lazy breath began to spin in front of them, cooling and corralling Luna’s ashes for several minutes before Touma, face pinched with painful concentration, blew them into the container he’d flown into a nearby town to find. It was just a simple clay container from a thrift store, but that was okay. They just needed a way to take her home.

Shuu hovered near Touma, ready to lend whatever support he could as he completed the grisly task. When the ashes were all swept up by Tenku’s power, Kongo brought his weapon crashing down onto the glass, shattering it into particles too minuscule to hurt anything. 

Water suddenly poured from Suiko’s hands, and Ryo flopped to the side and used his hand to scoop some into his mouth. Shin had removed the salt but the water still smelled like the sea. 

“Splash some on your face,” Shin insisted, and, pushing his armor completely away, Ryo complied. It helped. A little. “Good. Let’s go check on Seiji.”

Ryo felt completely numb as he rose to shakey feet and followed Shin around the nearby dunes.

“He’s still sleeping,” Jun said anxiously when they appeared. 

“They put a lot of bad things in Seiji’s system,” Nasutei said. “Even with Korin’s help, it’s going to take time for his body to purg it all. Ryo, how did it…” Her voice trailed off as she looked up at him, face tight with worry. 

“It’s done,” he told her dully. 

“I’m glad. I know that wasn’t easy. I know this has all been just… awful. I’m so sorry, Ryo.”

He nodded in silent acknowledgment, shoving his hands into his pockets where he could clutch at Luna’s hair ribbon. 

“I think the computer is fixable and just needs a new power source and some soldering work. Touma and I can handle that.”

“Yeah, sounds like it,” Touma agreed as he and Shuu walked up. Touma solemnly offered Ryo the makeshift urn, which he took. “How’s Seiji?”

“Still unconscious,” Shin reported. “I’ll be happier when we can get him into a real bed, but the extra time in his armor - even if it’s just the undergear - is helping. His color’s already better.”

Nasutei nodded in agreement and gathered up the computer parts she’s been working on. “Let’s get going, then.”

* * *

Shin walked steadily at Ryo’s side as they left the florist shop. He held the small bouquet of pink anemone flowers in his hand while Ryo kept their borrowed bag tight against his body, the urn inside cradled by the arm he had wrapped around it. 

Uncle Chin had been relieved to see them all and had grieved with them when they shared what had happened to Luna. The boisterous man had been solemn in response, taking time that evening to check in with each of them as well as making sure Seiji was being cared for. He’d spent the longest amount of time with Ryo and it seemed to have helped some. Ryo was still hurting, still grieving, but he wasn’t quite blaming himself as much as he had been for failing to keep Luna safe. 

The guilt would never fully fade but Chin seemed to have helped Ryo remember that Lune was ultimately responsible for her own life and choices. In time, Shin thought that would with help the sharp pain he felt now. 

“Where do you want to spread the ashes?” Shin asked quietly. He’d checked up on American funeral customs while Ryo talked with Uncle Chin. He wanted to try to make sure they did things like what she may have wanted and would have recognized. 

“The place underground,” Ryo said. “Where we all met up after the battle with Korin. It’s dingy but it’s a place that meant a lot to her. She’ll be able to rest there, surrounded by happy memories.”

“That sounds perfect,” Shin said. Better than going to Central Park or somewhere. It was good to know of one place, at least, that she’d loved. A place where she felt safe. “Do you want to leave all the flowers there as well?”

“No. I don’t want to take Jun or Nasutei or Seiji down there. They’ve been underground enough already. I have her hair ribbon. We can do something with that and some flowers above ground where they can come too.”

“Okay. Are you sure you don’t want to keep the ribbon? It’s okay to.”

Ryo frowned but nodded slowly. “Yeah, I think… it’ll be good to use it. It’ll help us let go.”

 _Help you, you mean_ , Shin thought sadly. But that was okay. It was okay for Ryo to be hurting more. They all understood and were ready to support him. 

Shin kept a light conversation going, gently prodding Ryo into engaging when he started to develop a crease between his eyes but otherwise letting him think in silence. They had plenty of time, after all, as slipping underground required patience and carefully avoiding law enforcement officers who were still on high alert after the deadly clash of armors. They managed it in the end after several false starts and lots of backtracking. 

The metal steps rung loudly underfoot as they descended to the place Luna remembered as her and her brother’s secret play spot. It looked dark, dingy, and wholly unsuitable for children, but at the same time, Shin could see how children might view it as a secret fortress, a place to play, climb, jump, and run out of the sun and away from unwelcome eyes. None of the mechanical equipment in this area seemed to run hot or rattle in frightening ways. It just _was,_ and for children, that was perfect. 

“This is as good a spot as any,” Ryo said after stepping a little ways in. “We need to make sure none of the ashes will get in the equipment.”

“I think it’ll be okay as long as we don’t scatter the ashes too far,” Shin said. 

Nodding, Ryo carefully set the bag down and pulled out the heavy container. He set it down on the floor and knelt down before it, clasping his hands together for a few moments of silent prayer. 

Finally, he spoke. “I’m sorry your funeral was so terrible, Luna. You deserved… so much more. Your family encountered the world of the armor and it destroyed you both. I’m so, so sorry. Uncle Chin said he’d find a way to make a proper memorial for you and your brother, even if he has to put it up in his restaurant. We won’t let you be forgotten and we’ll be back someday to make it _right.”_

Shin knelt down beside Ryo and bowed before adding his own prayers. Shame flooded through him for all the ceremonies they should have performed. “We will miss you, Luna. I am so sorry. This isn’t how this should be done. The Mortal World suffers when the armors touch it, though, so we can’t risk opening new points of contact. Please forgive us.”

The pair knelt in silence, then, nursing their own thoughts and prayers. Shin finished first and lowered his hands to his lap to wait for Ryo.

Ryo eventually lowered his own hands and regarded the makeshift urn with a mournful gaze. “Okay. Let’s do this.”

* * *

Shuu had volunteered to watch over Seiji. Everyone else was busy and he had plenty of practice taking care of people, after all. He could handle Seiji in whatever miserable state he’d be in when he awoke. 

That said, he was still shocked when Seiji went from unconsciousness to screaming in about half a second.

Vaulting across the room, Shuu caught one of Seiji’s flailing hands in his and helped haul him upright. He gasped, shaking, eyes wild as he stared around himself in bewilderment. 

“It’s okay, it’s absolutely okay now, dude. We got you out. You’re safe now.”

Seiji responded to Shuu’s quick, gentle assurances with a punch aimed right at his head. 

Okay, so he was going to be _that_ kind of patient. 

“I won’t give it to you,” Seiji rasped. His pupils were dilated and he’d been sweating for several hours now as his body struggled to purge whatever toxins and chemicals still swam through his veins. 

“Yeah, well, I don’t want it. Kongo’s hard enough to handle,” Shuu replied, dodging the blow and stepping out of hitting range.

Seiji paused, brow wrinkling in confusion. That must not have been a tactic his captors used on him. 

“We got you out yesterday,” Shuu said patiently. “Me and the other Troopers came to LA and got you out. Nasutei and Jun were there, as was a woman you don’t know, Luna.”

Looking utterly bewildered, Seiji stared at his hands, then touched his arms, running fingers all the way up from his wrists to his shoulders. There were lingering fern-like marks all over his skin, seeming to grow from every spot two or more of the plates of his undergear met. 

“Touma says those should fade. They’re, uh, fuck, I forget the name. A thing that starts with an L. They’re caused by being hit by lightning.”

“These aren’t… mine?” Seiji said, plucking at the tank top he was wearing with clumsy fingers. It was a far cry from his adrenalin and armor fueled wrath the day before. 

“Your clothes are in the wash,” Shuu told him. “So for now you’re borrowing some of Shin’s stuff. His shoulders are closer in size to yours than anyone else’s. It’s all the swimming,” Shuu added solemnly. 

“Shikaisen-“

“Ryo torched him with Inferno,” Shuu said, interrupting. “The fucking computer laser eyes thing didn’t understand it.”

“I never mentioned Inferno,” Seiji muttered, staring down at the blanket over his lap. He was thinking as hard as his drugged mind would let him. “I didn’t. It’s too powerful. I’m not… Shikaisen’s gone,” he realized. ”And the scientist is gone.”

It fucking _hurt_ to see Seiji like this. He was muddled and wilted, wearing Shin’s shlubby sleeping clothes instead of his usual fashionable attire. His skin was covered all over in signs of being constantly electrocuted and the injection marks up and down the sides of his neck were still red and raw looking. 

Fucking shitballs but Shuu hated seeing Seiji reduced to this state. He almost wished they could bring Shikaisen back to kill him all over again, only more painfully this time. (But not really, because the sorcerer had been a nightmare to deal with the first time. He was dead and gone and good riddance.)

“Hey, how about a shower?” Shuu suggested. “I remember that I wanted a shower more than anything after Ryo and Touma sprung us from the Youjakai.”

Seiji looked up slowly, eyes wide. It wasn’t surprising that this latest form of evil hadn’t been too keen on the idea of freeing Seiji so he could bathe. He’d gone from being almost too weak to stand to trying to murder every baddie in sight during the fight. Seiji was dangerous on the best of days and a vicious maniac on the bad ones. 

There was a reason Shuu considered Seiji one of his best friends. 

“I would… like a shower,” Seiji said tentatively. 

Shuu nodded patiently and slowly moved back within arms reach of Seiji. “I’m going to help you, okay?”

That got him a wary look but Seiji eventually let Shuu help him to his feet and into the bathroom. 

“Shuu?” Seiji suddenly said, his face suddenly turning green. “Feel sick.”

A lifetime of helping take care of his little brothers, sisters, and cousins kicked in and Shuu immediately shifted Seiji over to the toilet and helped support him while he vomited. 

Man, the sooner Touma and Nasutei got the scientist’s computer working and they could figure out what he’d been drugged with, the better. 

Shuu rubbed Seiji’s back as his body heaved and he choked up fluids and bile. Shin had dared giving Seiji some watered down chicken broth a few hours earlier during a brief period of semi-lucidity but maybe even that had been too soon? 

They could survive on literally nothing for a long time thanks to the armor, but the undergear didn’t give them the same degree of protection. Even Arago hadn’t been as awful as it seemed the sorcerer and scientist duo had been. Arago had at least known what he was doing and how far he could push them without risking possible permanent damage. 

Well, it could just be the drugs or suddenly walking again after being tied up and hung in the air for a few weeks or maybe he’d suddenly remembered some of the things they’d done to him. It could be any, all, or none of those and that was just… awful.

Shuu risked leaving Seiji’s side long enough to fill the plastic cup sitting next to the sink with water once Seiji stopped gagging. “Small sip,” he ordered, moving to support Seiji again. 

Seiji’a hands were shaking so bad that Shuu made sure to help keep the cup steady while Seiji tipped it up to drink. He let Seiji take a few more small sips, then took the cup away. “Don’t want to overdo it,” he said. “Okay, you sit and get your shirt off while I start the shower okay?”

“... Right.”

It didn’t take long for hot water to start pouring out of the shower head. Shuu cooled it off a little from there so Seiji wouldn’t feel scalded, then hesitated. 

Seiji had managed to get his borrowed shirt off but looked both miserable and helpless as he sat on the floor. “Where’s Jun?” Seiji suddenly asked. 

“He’s hanging out with my uncle,” Shuu said. “The shower’s ready. Do you want to sit in the shower while I wait out here or do you want me to be in there with you to help you stand and get clean?

Both choices were terrible for someone as independent as Seiji, but Shuu wasn’t taking any chances. They could revisit the idea of Seiji bathing independently once he successfully kept down some food and Shuu wasn’t worried he’d pass out and fall on wet, slippery tile. 

Seiji’s brain must have started coming unglued enough to realize how weak he was right now because despite how much he scowled, he didn’t protest either option. Instead, he stared at the shower for a long moment. “I want to stand,” he said finally, and Shuu nodded and started taking his clothes off. Honestly, this was Shuu’s preference, too. He’d be able to react a lot faster this way if something happened

And honestly? The little bit of awkwardness was worth it to see how happy Seiji was once he was under the stream of warm water. 

Shuu helped Seiji with getting clean and rinsing off, making sure to keep a hand on or near him at all times just in case. And Seiji did wobble every now and then, or start swaying a little from time to time and even the mild heat of the shower started to get to him.

What mattered, though, was for Seiji to finally feel _clean_ and _in control._ Because Shuu never presumed. He asked before reaching out every time and let Seiji decide what Shuu would help him with. 

Losing his personal agency had been one of the worst parts of being held captive in the Youjakai. Shuu still had nightmares about that. Seiji had probably felt the same back then, and going through something similar now must have made all those feelings come back again but even worse this time.

So Shuu was careful and tried not to assume anything. And he must have done something right because Seiji was a lot more clear eyed and alert as he hugged a clean towel around himself once they were done. 

“Clothes?” Shuu asked as he dried off.

“Yes, please.” 

Shuu tied his towel around his waist and tucked his clothes under his arm before helping Seiji back to the bedroom. 

Seiji even made a face when he saw the boxers, loose cargo shorts, t-shirt, and hoodie Shin had left for him. And it all really did look bizarre on Seiji. 

“Back in bed,” Shuu ordered him cheerfully. “I’ll call Uncle about getting some food brought up, okay?”

“I’m not an invalid,” Seiji protested. 

“No, but you’ve been through hell and we are freaked the fuck out. Let us pamper you for awhile. You deserve it and it’ll be reassuring for us.” Seiji’s eyes fixed on his lap at Shuu’s gentle scolding and Shuu had to fight back a scowl. “Nope. None of that. You didn’t deserve this and you literally cannot convince me otherwise. Accept our love, asshole.”

That got him a twitching of Seiji’s lips, which Shuu took as a win. Fucking self-sacrificing bastard. 

Shuu kept an eye on Seiji as he used the room phone to call down for some very, very mild food. They were absolutely going to baby Seiji for as long as they could. Seiji took slow, measured sips of water from a bottle while Shuu chatted with his uncle. 

And since Shuu was halfway across the room, that naturally meant Seiji vomited again once he’d drunk about half the bottle. 

Shuu winced. “Yeah, can you send some cleaning stuff up too?” he said into the phone, interrupting the meandering list of food ideas for Seiji Chin was going through. “Thanks, Uncle.”

Seiji was almost as green as his armor when Shuu hung up. He tossed their damp towels over the mess and sat down beside his friend, rubbing his back again. “You’ve got a lot of foreign crap in your system still, okay, dude? So don’t feel bad about puking. Touma and Nasutei are working on figuring out what exactly is in you so we can make a plan.”

“Okay. Fine. It’s-“ Seiji’s breath hitched and Shuu saw he was starting to sweat again. Seiji took several deep breaths, gulping hard between each one to try and keep down whatever bile was left in his stomach from coming up. A small whimper slipped out of him as he squeezed his eyes shut. 

“It’s okay not to feel good,” Shuu insisted, knowing that Seiji’s upbringing probably said otherwise. “I bet you feel like complete shit. Don’t worry about manners or anything. We’ll get you a puke bucket or make a camp bed in the bathroom if that’s easier. You cannot shock or disgust me, okay? I’ve taken care of family with fucking norovirus. That makes things come out boths ends, sometimes at the same time.”

Seiji nodded and pulled his legs up into his chest. He hid his face in his raised knees. “I don’t feel good,” he admitted, half-sobbing. 

“Okay. That’s okay. Come ‘ere.” Shuu encouraged Seiji to fall against him, then held him tight as his shoulders began to shake. 

This was only the beginning, Shuu knew. They weren’t anywhere near the full fallout from Seiji being kidnapped and tortured for over two goddamned weeks before any of them realized something had happened. He’d be physically healthy way, way sooner than mentally healthy. And once he was physically recovered, he’d start pushing them away because Date Seiji wasn’t usually allowed to be seen as a mere human. No, he was used to having to measure up to insane standards no matter the personal cost.

The mission right now was simple: give Seiji as many cuddles as currently humanly possible and chase after him for more once he was strong enough to run away.

Shuu leaned back against the wall, still holding Seiji close. A few nudges with his feet and knees got Seiji to uncurl and stretch his legs out. He didn’t loosen his grip while Seiji cried into his shirt and just helped him tip sideways to lean over the side of the bed when he lost the fight to keep his gag reflex under control. 

There was a reason Shuu had volunteered for this. Out of all of them, he was the best prepared to deal with how gross, angry, and wild Seiji might get. He was ready when Seiji’s vomiting turned into dry heaves, and already had a package of baby wipes in hand when Seiji finally stopped gagging. If Seiji needed another shower, that was fine. If he went to sleep and woke up thinking he was still captured, Shuu could keep him from hurting anyone (including himself) until he snapped out of it. 

Most of all, though? Shuu was more than ready to shower Seiji with the open and unassuming love and affection he needed to start dragging himself out of the mental gutter he was in. 

No matter what came next, he would make sure Seiji never doubted that they would always be there for him.


End file.
